. . .because Morris, Minnesota, is a pleasant, quiet, safe yet intellectually stimulating place on the west central Minnesota prairie, home of the U of M-Morris and a whole lot of interesting people. - morris mn

"You'll never get ahead if you don't take care of what you have." - Doris Waddell, RIP

A historic building on our U of M-Morris campus - morris mn

The multi-ethnic building was the original home of the music department at UMM. (B.W. photo)

Friday, July 29, 2016

Why couldn't movie give Pedro Ramos his due?

The movie "61*" is one of the great all-time cinematic offerings about baseball. It was a labor of love by Billy Crystal.

The
New York Yankees of the early 1960s gained fame beyond their sheer
talent level. New York City was full of newspapers competing for
stories. The teeming members of (my) boomer generation were getting
fascinated by baseball, not to mention Cassius Clay.
Yes, the movie
"61*" is a classic. There is a strange historical error though. Is it a
"goof?" Movie summary websites often list "goofs." One of the Titanic
movies had so many goofs, I didn't see the point in listing them. The
review could have just stated that "the moviemakers took
considerable artistic license with the facts." For example, there was no
horn section in the music group on the big doomed boat! Well, who
cares, I guess.
The movie "61*" depicts the opening day of 1961 at
Yankee Stadium, NYC. A season was about to unfold that had Fargo's Roger
Maris hitting 61 home runs, breaking Babe Ruth's record. Many
middle-age fans at the time could remember seeing the Babe play, in
person. Many did not accept this new guy, Maris, who seemed completely
lacking in the kind of charisma that the Babe exuded. My generation,
Billy Crystal included, decided to embrace Maris for the long run. He
was "our guy." We loved Mickey Mantle too.
"61*" shows us opening day with the distinctive radio voices of the Yanks depicted: the steady Mel Allen and the eccentric Phil Rizzuto,
the latter often inserting his daily trivial tidbits of life that were
separate from baseball. Mel Allen goes around the diamond to recite the
names of the iconic Yankee players of that time.
The Yankees were
destined to have this period of dynasty end in the mid-1960s. It was our
Twins who knocked the Yankees off their perch in 1965. In a short
period of time, the Yankees went from being best in the American League
to being totally pedestrian. In 1966 they finished last! They did so
even with some familiar names left over, as if they were ghosts, from
the dynastic days. It felt odd.
The Minnesota Twins were a new team
in 1961. Let's apply an asterisk there, as these new Twins were actually
the old Washington Senators. Minnesota gave this tired old franchise a
chance to stretch its legs, taking advantage of better support and a
better stadium. Our Twins played their 1961 opener at "The House that
Ruth Built" in NYC.
The movie shows the Twins watching wide-eyed as Mickey Mantle steps into the cage for batting practice.
At one point he signals to the pitcher that he's going from batting
right-handed to left. Right-handed seemed more natural to Mick - he'd
attack the ball as if he were wielding a tomahawk, whereas as a lefty he
had more of an upper-cut swing. Mantle made his switch in the batting
cage, whereupon the actor playing Yogi Berra said "look, he's
'ambidextrial.' " Elston Howard was bemused.
The memories of early
1960s baseball rushed to the fore as we consumed this scene in the
movie. Maybe I got a little misty. Then the movie moves on to the April
11 game itself. The movie doesn't tell us the final score but it
indicates the Yankees were struggling.
"Pascual with the pitch" we hear the Mel Allen character say. Pascual? Camilo Pascual? I'm one of those Twins fans who still remembers the original Twins well. I noticed that "Pascual" in the movie was dark-skinned in a way that he'd be characterized as black. He was Cuban. But the real Camilo Pascual was rather light-skinned.
But here's the biggest problem: Camilo Pascual was not the Twins' opening day pitcher in 1961! I understand how moviemakers take artistic license. But why was there a need to present Pascual
as our historic (first-ever) opening day pitcher when in fact it was
Pedro Ramos? Yes, it was "The Cuban Cowboy" Ramos who pitched and in
fact humiliated Mantle, Maris and the other Yankees. My goodness, Ramos
pitched a complete game shutout in a 6-0 Twins victory! So why doesn't
he get acknowledged properly in the movie "61*?" Beats me.
Is it based on Pascual being better-remembered than Ramos? Pascual
ended up having more impact with the Twins. But it's such a long-ago
time. Most young fans of today are probably unfamiliar with either of
those early names.

A mainstay for original Twins
Pedro Ramos was a very interesting player who had
a 15-year career beginning in 1955. He was an American League All-Star
in 1959. He led the A.L. in losses four times, in 1958, 1959, 1960 and
1961. He lost 20 games for our inaugural edition of the Twins in 1961.
Is this a huge black mark? Well, not necessarily. I have read that you
have to be a pretty good pitcher to lose 20 games, really.
Ramos was
a Yankee in the closing stages of the 1964 season, the team's last (for
that time period) as kingpin in the A.L. He was in fact a sensation for
the Bronx Bombers in the pennant drive of '64. He was traded from the
Indians to the Yankees for $75,000 and two players to be named later.
Ramos worked out of the bullpen in the Yankees' stretch drive. He saved
eight games and posted a 1.25 earned run average in 13 appearances,
during a stretch when New York needed all the help they could get. They
barely held off the Chicago White Sox and Baltimore Orioles.
In
21 innings, Ramos struck out 21 batters and, amazingly, walked none.
But because the trade happened after August 31, Ramos was not eligible
to pitch in the World Series. The Yanks were edged by the Cardinals in
seven games in the Fall Classic. Take away two errors by the normally
slick-fielding Bobby Richardson, the second baseman, and the Yankees
could well have won.
In 1960, Ramos made history by being part of an
"all-Cuban triple play." It happened at Griffith Stadium in Washington
D.C. in the Senators' last season there, before coming to Minnesota. The
Senators were playing the Kansas City Athletics (the future Oakland
A's). The date was July 23. In the top of the third inning, Whitey Herzog came to bat for K.C. There's a full count. Jerry Lumpe - remember him? - was on first base and Bill Tuttle at second. Herzog hit a liner to Ramos. Ramos whirled and threw to first baseman Julio Becquer. Lumpe was doubled up for out No. 2. Becquer fired the ball to second base where the shortstop, Jose Valdivielso, tripled up the slow-of-foot Tuttle. An all-Cuban triple play!
Calvin Griffith's franchise was known to be very accommodating for Cuban talent. Jim Kaat joked that the "TC" on the Twins caps stood for "twenty Cubans."
Ramos
was held back for most of his career playing for inferior teams with
inferior defense. He definitely made his mark, though. His outstanding
shutout performance in the Twins' first-ever game, at the hallowed
Yankee Stadium, ought to elevate him higher in the Twins' historic
pantheon than where he is.

Summer scenes around Morris, 2012

Click on the image to view a Flickr album of photos taken around the Morris area in the warm weather months of 2012. This group includes photos taken at the 2012 UMM graduation. The image above taken near Perkins Lake was chosen for display in the "Minnesota Explorers" Flickr gallery which is linked to Rick Kupchella's "Bring Me the News" MN website. Also chosen was a field of sunflowers photo I took. I'm delighted to have such platforms available. - B.W.

Past MACA Tiger football photos:

City of Morris perspective:

Pin it on your chest!

Click on the above image to access our "City Data" page.

Morris Theater - morris mn

Click on this image to read thoughts/reflections on our Morris Theater, which is hanging on through changing times (as a co-op). There is a link at the bottom of this post to read part 2 as well. These posts were written in spring of 2010 so there are some dated references. Any Morris native can spin some fond recollections of enjoying cinema fare there with friends.

Enjoy some fall scenery around Morris:

Enjoy some winter scenes around Morris:

Sam Smith statue - morris mn

Click on the image to read about the Sam Smith "running rifleman" statue at Summit Cemetery. This post explores the life of Samuel Smith, early Morris resident. He fought for the Union cause in several major engagements in the Civil War. The statue is patterned after the statue for the First Minnesota Regiment at Gettysburg National Park. This post is the newest of three that I have written about Sam Smith. I consider it the most comprehensive about the man. The statue can be an overlooked landmark of Morris MN. Everyone here ought to be familiar with it. Smith raised a large family north of Morris.

The first building here

In 1871 the first building erected within the village of Morris was the headquarters of the chief engineer of the railroad, C.H.F. Morris. With the railroad came the people.

The WCROC overlook

A nice view to the west is afforded from the WCROC overlook. It's a relatively new feature of the WCROC grounds. Specifically it's part of the WCROC Horticulture Garden. Click on the image to reach the West Central Research and Outreach Center (WCROC) website. Les Lindor was instrumental in making the overlook a reality. He served the West Central Experiment Station (the entity predating the WCROC) as ag engineer.

Stay informed about Stevens County MN:

Morris' music mecca:

Words to live by

This original and popular sign can be seen from the highway between Morris and Cyrus. It's associated with the late Dan Helberg. There used to be a sculpture next to it but perhaps it was removed due to legal restrictions (i.e. as a distraction). The sign has the thumbs-up for which we are grateful. Let's always heed these words.

Some spring/summer photo scenes:

The bike trail system

Call it both a walking and bicycling trail. It snakes along both the east and west sides of our Pomme de Terre River. You can do a complete lap which reportedly measures 4 1/2 miles. It's a fitness challenge for those willing to push their bodies a little! This photo was taken on the east side of the river, heading toward Lake Crissey (a wide spot on the river). Spring is a great time to get out there.

Our area's history:

Remembering "ag school"

From the time it accepted its first class in 1910, until it graduated its final class of seniors in 1963, over 7,000 students attended the West Central School of Agriculture. The precursor of the U of M-Morris, it opened its doors to its first class of 103 students in October of 1910.

Wildflowers out by the river

Click on this image to reach the "Minnesota wildflowers" website. This photo was taken on the west side of our Pomme de Terre River.

Before the current library

In 1921 the Stevens County Memorial Armory was built on the 100 block of East 6th Street, the site which is now occupied by the Morris Public Library.1969 saw the opening of the new Morris Public Library on the site of the old armory, leaving vacant the Carnegie building. The Historical Society found a new home in the Carnegie building in 1970.

A suggested restaurant

About Me

Brian Williams is a former writer in the Morris "dead tree" media who plies his pastime in the wonderful, liberating new media today. He refuses to consider himself an alternative journalist because the web is now the mainstream. Newspapers are in rapid retreat and it won't be long before they will exist in vestigial form only. Print media will not die because as a media observer put it: "We will always have print media for as long as there's a 'print' button on your computer." A once weekly newspaper (like in Morris) won't cut it. It's not consistent with our instant gratification culture. But the media are blossoming more than ever thanks to all the new tools. It's an uplifting, "green" new universe. Key word suggestions: morris mn - hancock mn - donnelly mn - cyrus mn - chokio mn - alberta mn - 56267 - stevens county - morris theater mn - morris area tigers - hancock owls.

Buy a car:

Pomme de Terre or Perkins?

Most maps identify it as "Perkins Lake" but it's known as Pomme de Terre to many local residents. The sign at the entry to the lake access uses the Pomme de Terre term, so that seems legitimate. This lake is part of a chain that represent wide spots on the Pomme de Terre River. Pomme de Terre Lake is useful for recreation and fishing, plus there are many fine residences along the shoreline. The chain is located several miles north of Morris.

A Destiny Driver. . .

"I Love Morris" is consistent with one of the "destiny drivers" as articulated by Stevens Forward! (named for Stevens County): "By 2010 we will enhance our interconnectedness by better utilizing the technology infrastructure to create a virtual community." (2010 is already here but this is always a "work in progress!")

We're the "Storm" in hockey

Click on this image to reach the official website of the Morris Benson Area "Storm" hockey program. Of course it's "MBA" for short. In Morris these teams play at the Lee Community Center, next to the fairgrounds.

B.W.'s country music memories, 1996-97:

Your Congressman:

Maintain perspective:

Main street of Morris mn

Atlantic Avenue is the main street of Morris and it's typically abuzz. Click on the above image to reach the Stevens County Economic Improvement Commission website.

Gager's Station

The first stopping place in Stevens County was Gager's Station, considered by some historians to be one of the more important stopping plces on the Wadsworth Trail. The station was nestled among the trees near Wintermute Lake.

VIDEO CLIPS

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The Eagles huddle

Blue is the color of the Morris amateur baseball team which goes by the nickname "Eagles." They're pictured about to break a pre-game huddle at their home: Chizek Field, named for the late Don Chizek who coached the Morris High Tigers for many years. The Tigers now have their own veteran coach in Lyle Rambow. Lyle had a successful playing career with the Eagles.

RIP jazz band leaders:

Best dog you could own:

"Dog is my co-pilot":

Superb early-morning TV:

Wind turbines - morris mn

There are two grand wind turbines such as this one on the eastern edge of Morris. It appears glistening white in this photo but they often are dark, silhouetted against the bright sky. A photographer never tires of them. They have become sustainable symbols of the community.

A trail of long ago here

The Wadsworth Trail was established by the U.S. Government in 1864 to transport supplies from St. Cloud to Fort Wadsworth, west of present day Sisseton, South Dakota.

No longer just a comedian:

She's upstaging Jim Klobuchar now:

Visit our McDonald's

It's a hotspot for dependable fast food and, just as important, socializing: our McDonald's Restaurant on the north end of Atlantic Avenue.

Our park in west Morris

Wells Park, located near Pacific Avenue and West 11th Street, was established in 1916 on land donated to the city by Henry Wells (a successful businessman and land investor) and Margaret Hulburd. Additional land was donated in 1935 by the Wells Investment Company, and in 1980 by Grace Zamerow.